No Turning Back from Democracy

It's wrong to see Islam and democracy as opposites. In periods when Islam wasn't fully practiced, perhaps it was more backward than today's democracy. For example, human rights were stepped on and despotic persons headed the state. Some enlightened persons have said all this.

But some Islamic groups accuse you of pacifying people.

That's not important. Is Islam not full democracy, and democracy is not full Islam. Democracy is a system the world has favored, but it is still being refined. It's on the way to its real essence. Nobody says that Turkey is a full democracy. What is said is: "We still haven't become democratized. That's why we weren't able to enter the Customs Union." This means that democracy is still beign perfected. Democracy is a process; it's not possible to turn back. Nuriye Akman, Sabah daily, 1/23-30/95